Spotlight: Surveillance - Data for action 

The ECDC Spotlight series of web publications keeps expanding. The new ‘Spotlight: Surveillance’ presents an overview of ECDC’s surveillance activities, explains the finer points of disease surveillance, and shows how data are collected and used in order to provide a maximum of protection for European citizens and their families.   The new spotlight features three main messages:  Surveillance is essential to the understanding of the epidemiology of infectious diseases.  European surveillance supports other European Union and national public health efforts, thus providing an added value.  Surveillance data provide scientific evidence, allowing for a better and targeted public health response. The current Spotlight includes a description of the European surveillance system - Tessy - and related epidemic intelligence work. Additional links provide access to key legislation, a list of reportable communicable diseases (including case definitions), and an overview of ECDC’s current surveillance networks.  Offerings include a video blog, an animated video, and a series of downloadable PowerPoint slides on disease surveillance.  This issue of Spotlight is part of the Spotlight series of web publications and primarily aimed at experts in the field of public health. The series highlights areas of special interest in the areas of public health, communicable disease prevention, disease surveillance and disease control.